A top Fox executive said that Megyn Kelly would not be returning to the network if she does indeed exit NBC after that network canceled her show.
“I’m a big fan of Megyn’s. I like her a lot. We didn’t want her to leave Fox when she did,” Lachlan Murdoch, the CEO of New Fox, said at the DealBook Conference on Nov. 1, reported Bloomberg. “Having said that, I’m very happy with our current lineup on Fox, and we won’t be making any changes there.”
The statement comes after NBC officially canceled Kelly’s show on Oct. 26.
“Megyn Kelly Today is not returning,” an NBC News spokesperson said, noting the hour would be hosted by other “Today” co-anchors.
Kelly worked at Fox News from 2004 to 2017. After leaving in January that year, she joined NBC in mid-2017 and signed a reported 3-year, $69 million deal.
Murdoch also said that a report from an openly liberal publication claiming Fox’s reporters and hosts were told to cover Kelly’s mistakes closely after she left the network was false.
“The PR department here defends and protects the Fox News brand and all of its talent on a 24/7 basis. There is no war whatsoever and no resentment against anyone who formerly worked at the network, including Megyn,” Murdoch said, reported the Daily Caller.
‘The Only One’
Murdoch also hit back at criticism of Fox News, which primarily comes from its competitors.
“Fox News is the only mass media company in America with conservative opinions. It’s the only one,” Murdoch said. “Frankly, I feel in this country we all have to be more tolerant of each other’s views. We’ve come to this point where we are more and more intolerant of each other and frankly that has to change.”
Although he didn’t note so, Fox News has continually beat its closest rivals, MSNBC and CNN, in ratings throughout the Trump presidency.
In October, the network averaged more viewers than CNN and MSNBC combined, noted AdWeek.
“October 2018 was just a really good month for Fox News Channel,” the website said in its ratings analysis. “Fox News was the most-watched network in cable news for the 202nd consecutive month. It also beat CNN and MSNBC combined in total viewers in prime time, and across the 24-hour day.”
